It feels like it was more recently but in fact it was over a year ago in January of 2018 that Nintendo very casually announced Mario Kart Tour for mobile devices. It was originally set to launch before the end of March this year, but at the beginning of the year Nintendo announced a slight delay saying that Mario Kart Tour would be arriving in the summer instead. Just over a month ago, they opened up sign-ups for a closed beta test for Android players which kicked off today in both Japan and the US and will run through June 4th. While this is supposed to be a “closed" beta test, these early testers haven’t been shy about sharing their experiences with Mario Kart Tour thus far.
Back in February of last year shortly after the game’s announcement the CEO of DeNA, who are partners with Nintendo in creating Mario Kart Tour, said that the game would be “free to start" which many had taken to mean would be something more along the lines of Super Mario Run where it’s a free demo with a one-time IAP to unlock the full game, rather than a typical free to play game with timers and gachas. That is apparently not the case at all. Mario Kart Tour is as free to play as they get based on the beta, with gacha pulls used to unlock characters and kart parts. Even worse is that the various Nintendo characters in the game have different levels of rarity and some appear to have special advantages over others, meaning certain players could have gameplay advantages over others based on which characters they were lucky enough to unlock.
While I’m not thrilled about that I could still probably deal with it, but Mario Kart Tour also contains something that’s my most hated thing in any free to play game: A stamina meter. It’ll cost hearts to begin races, and of course there’s a cool down timer for those hearts, so once you’re out you’re stuck not playing until the timer refills your hearts or you pay for a refill IAP. Stupidly, these timers also pop up when you’ve unlocked a new Cup, making you wait for some reason before you can play a new set of courses. Why developers ever want to actively prevent you from playing their games I’ll never understand.
As for the game itself, it seems to be a stripped down take on Mario Kart built with mobile in mind. It plays in portrait orientation so you can play with just one hand, and there are only two laps per course as opposed to the typical three in mainline Mario Kart games to provide a quicker, more mobile-friendly experience. You control your kart’s steering by dragging on the screen or tilting your device, and you have the option of having the drifting mechanic which is integral to Mario Kart be handled for you automatically or doing it yourself. Most early players have said that turning on manual drifting makes a big difference in the amount of fun they’re having, as does moving into the faster circuits as the 50cc you start out on is painfully slow. Here’s a nice video from YouTuber Davidth showing a full race in the game.
It’s important to note that this is a beta and things can certainly change between now and the game’s full release this summer, but I wouldn’t expect any miracles in terms of the monetization model that we’re seeing in the beta. This will be a very free to play game, and it will probably make a boat load of money. As long as it provides a satisfying Mario Kart racing experience I think I can deal with that, but based on early impressions it seems this might just be a bland shell of the full Mario Kart games. I felt like Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp had the look and feel of an Animal Crossing game down but none of the heart, and I’m hoping that’s not the case here. This thread over on the ResetEra forums seems to be the main gathering point of all things Mario Kart Tour, so head over there if you want to see a lot more screen shots, videos, and impressions from beta testers.
Yuck. This sounds disappointing. I was hoping they could figure out a more accessible model with fewer F2P mechanics. More along the lines of Fortnite’s cosmetic purchases. If the gameplay was good enough to engage a big audience, popularity could drive spending rather than manipulation and standard shenanigans.
Cosmetics paired with meaningful multiplayer (with friends) is the way to go. People love to show off their newest skin, etc.
Because of course it is... but a small part of me held our hope that it wouldn’t be another example of F2P trash that tosses fun and even competition aside in hopes of monetization. But not quite enough to be too surprised.
What about a landscape mode ? And controller support ??
Those would definitely be welcomed features since I use my iPad most of the time but I feel that Nintendo doesn’t view anything outside of their mobile ecosystem as primary gaming.
Since Super Mario Run they’ve touted their iOS games as one touch, easy to pick up and a “alternative” to their library when you want your Nintendo fix but don’t have access to the real thing. If they give iOS users a grander experience they might view that as harming their own mobile brand especially now that their hybrid system is doing great business.
Especially considering that an iPhone 8 is more powerful than the Switch and that an iPhone X or Xs can run anything that the Switch does at a higher frame rate and resolution without over heating too much.
No the iPhone 8 isn’t more powerful... don’t believe the kiolaid or the hype. If it was so powerful you’d have MK11 on it.
Nintendo Switch has 2015 cpu-gpu, 200 gflops on portable 400 gflops on dock. But new iPhones near 1 tflops and iPad Pros near Xbox One 1,3 tflops performance. 3x-4x much powerful than Nintendo Switch.
Available on Switch with a purchase of the full version of MK Tour; i.e. the actual game ;). Nintendo sure aren't looking to replicate their console games on mobile, that much is clear...
Are there people out there paying real money to refill stamina in F2P games?!? Is this old archaic arcade monetization method still alive? If so many developers have it in their games, somebody must be throwing their money away.
No there's not, that's why games have them, so devs lose money. *eyeroll*
Yeah I think that’s the case why so many developers use these monetization methods must be very profitable.
From what I've been told over the years, the stamina systems are not big revenue drivers but they create "appointment gaming" so they definitely get people to come back to games regularly and thus increase the metrics of a game, increasing "engagement" or whatever.
Make it premium and I'll buy it. Not interested in F2P/P2W mechanics.
This is one of those games that could bend/evolve the revenue streams on mobile. Why not do something simple like $3.99 a month “Driver’s License”, cosmetic upgrade IAP, unlock stuff through winning/achievements? If Mario Kart can’t garner a more creative revenue stream other than pay for more energy no other title will ever swing it. I realize Nintendo felt burned by the business model of Super Mario Run and I get it but not every title has to be either premium or F2P.
these games are made to be frustrating so you drop your phone and buy an actual Nintendo console
You lost me at “stamina system”. why do all developers love implementing that terrible stamina system? If you ask me it will only scare players off and lower their playtime which will also lower their chance of buying things on the game.
There must be metrics that support stamina systems over no stamina systems, otherwise they wouldn't be so prevalent, I imagine.
Why a watered down version.....please Nintendo slap a price on it so people can have the real Mario Kart experience playable in horizontal mode because of a more immersive game experience and mifi compatible I HATE FTP you paying with hours of grinding or other shenanigans. I don’t understand that DeNa is changing the perfect (Mario) kart formula.
If it were landscape and MFI compatible would you pay $59.99 USD?
Why you came up with that price point ? and to answer your question no I don’t want to pay that amount for a mobile game it always depends on the quality and gameplay than I decide If I want to pay the asking price. I always prefer when games are mfi compatible.
Because what you were asking for is what Nintendo already provides with the Switch Mario Kart. Why would they provide the same experience and not charge the same price?
I didn’t ask for nothing I only suggested that when Nintendo want to bring Mario Kart to mobile than make the best version possible.There is more than enough bullsh•t in the AppStore I didn’t say that I want the same experience as the Switch version they can make a ton of money when they play their cards right there a lot more phones than there are Switch consoles on the one hand Nintendo wants a slice of the mobile gaming market but on the other hand wants to keep their IP’s exclusive it doesn’t work that way and Nintendo have enough financial wizards to come up with a price that’s in a sort of middle ground between the Switch and a mobile version.There are always be price differences look at games that are released on PC’s and also on consoles the PC gamers pay less for exactly the same game but in the end they make more money because of the fact that there are way more PC’s than consoles.
Rip, this game will die very soon after it come out.
So basically it’s as good as Real Racing 3 is then.... and this is the Nintendo that supposedly doesn’t like IAP’s... yeah right I bet they’ll live the mountains of cash it’ll generate, £39 for a Kart? No problem...
Sad...I was hoping for a free-to-start game like Mario Run. I'd be willing to shell out $10-$20 for a premium Mario Kart on my phone.
Going to go against the trend here and say I tentatively think it sounds like it might be alright. Yes I would love a full premium, controller supporting version I could play anywhere - but in the absence of that a version that I can play one handed for a few minutes while killing time (and is also free) is just as welcome.
The one concern I have is around internet connectivity, if it has to be online only that could scupper how good the game is - we often want to play these games when we are somewhere with no signal devs!